


Holding Out For A Hero

by mandeebobandee



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-11
Updated: 2019-03-23
Packaged: 2019-11-15 20:37:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18080492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mandeebobandee/pseuds/mandeebobandee
Summary: Everyone has their own unique skillsets to offer to the world. In some cases, those skillsets are more unique than others...





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter is going to be mostly backstory, but I do have some good things planned with it...hope you enjoy it so far!

Patton Sanders, age 31, was the father to a 19 year old, a 20 year old, a 21 year old, and a 29 year old.  
  
Not  _biologically_ , of course. That would be silly. Biologically, Patton was the full brother of one 29 year old and the half-brother of a 19 year old, a 20 year old, and a 21 year old.  
  
But Toby, now 19, first referred to Patton as 'Dad' at the age of 2, and the name stuck.  
  
Their family was a mess, but 29 year old Virgil would not change it for the world.  
  
Patton and Virgil came from their mother's first marriage. Their mother and father divorced when Patton was 7 and Virgil was 5. Their mother maintained full custody, though they had the occasional visit with their father.   
  
Their mother, Sally, remarried two years later, and along came their younger half-siblings. As if by design, each was born one year and one month to the day after the prior.  
  
Augustus was born on August 1st. Deciding to run with the theme, Sally dubbed her next child, born September 1st of the next year, as Ember. Finally, on October 1st of the year after that, Toby came along.  
  
Augustus, Ember, and Toby never saw it coming. They were too young. Virgil and Patton, however, recognized the signs. Sally and her new husband weren't getting along. Virgil and Patton would even discuss in hushed voices when they thought their mother and her second husband would finally declare they were getting divorced.  
  
Turned out  _he_  didn't want to wait around for a divorce.  _He_  took matters into his own hands and decided to walk out not only on his wife but his three children and two step-children.  
  
Virgil didn't think it was worth referring to him by name after that. If he wanted to be nothing to his family, he would  _remain_  nothing to them.   
  
Patton was only fourteen at the time, but he did what he could to care for their younger siblings when their mother was at work. He cooked dinner for them, read them bedtime stories, and tucked them in at night if their mother worked particularly late (and she often did, as a single mother of five). Virgil did what he could to help, but at twelve he wasn't quite as adept at it as Patton was.  
  
Patton got along the easiest with Augustus, who preferred to go by August by third grade, as kids were starting to tease him and compare him to Augustus Gloop from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He got along well enough with Ember at first, but by the time she hit her teen years she became quiet and withdrawn, as if something was constantly weighing on her. Patton found out exactly  _what_  one day when he walked into her room and noticed her wrapping ACE bandages around herself.  
  
Patton immediately blurted out his apologies and left the room to allow Ember privacy. However, he confronted Ember later that day. "We need to talk," he told Ember in what was quite possibly the most serious tone Virgil ever heard from his older brother.  
  
"You shouldn't be using ACE bandages, you know," he heard Patton say to Ember from around the corner.  
  
"But I  _have_  to, I can't stand to live like this any longer!" Ember blurted out.  
  
"That's what I thought. Tell me, do you like any of these?" Patton pulled out his phone and showed it to Ember. Ember held a hand over their mouth as their eyes welled up with tears.  
  
"A binder? You'd really be willing to get me a-"  
  
"Anything that makes you feel more comfortable with yourself, Ember," Patton smiled. "Just promise you won't use ACE bandages anymore!"  
  
"Seth."  
  
"Hmmm?"  
  
"I think I want to go by Seth instead," Seth confessed.  
  
And so Ember became Seth, as Virgil and Patton realized that they had  _three_  younger brothers.  
  
Patton struggled with Toby, especially once he reached his teen years and started to act out. Virgil, who by this point was done with college, stepped in. Virgil could understand Toby's more 'dark and edgy' vibe than Patton could, and the two became closer than ever. Patton would still be 'Dad', as he always was and probably always would be, but Virgil was the cool older brother that Toby emulated.  
  
But they were all grown up now.   
  
August and Seth were both in college, and Toby moved in with his bandmates soon after he graduated from high school. They experienced moderate success locally, though they were still trying to hit it big and score a record deal. Virgil made sure to attend all of their shows - Toby played the drums and sung back up and he had to admit that Toby was really  _good_  at it. The rest of the band was good too, of course, but as the drummer was his younger brother he figured that he was allowed to play favorites.  
  
As their younger brothers were grown and moved out, Virgil and Patton finally decided to branch out on their own. Neither of them made enough to afford rent on their own, but they solved this problem by moving in  _together_.  
  
Their close knit family, however, remained just as close knit as they always were, as evidenced by the fact that August, Seth, and Toby were the only ones privy to the secret that Virgil and Patton shared. A humongous secret that they didn't trust anyone else with, not even their mother.  
  
And that's where the story begins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lemme know if I messed anything up with the transgender part of this chapter. I tried to cover it as best as I possibly could, but I'm not trans, so if I did do something wrong please let me know so I can fix it. <3 Also, I gotta admit that Toby's being in a band is somewhat inspired by insanelycoolish's This Love Hate Relationship, which is one of my favorite Sanders Sides fics. Check it out some time!


	2. Chapter 2

"They wrote an article about our favorite superheroes again!" Patton called out as soon as Virgil stepped through the door upon arriving home from work.  
  
Virgil quirked an eyebrow upward as he shed his lab coat and slipped on his favorite purple and black hoodie. Ah, much more comfortable. He sank into his usual spot on the sofa. "Oh? What did they have to say this time?"  
  
"They think Flight Or Flight has a girlfriend!" Patton chirped cheerfully, using his finger to scroll down on his phone.  
  
Virgil immediately burst into uncontrollable laughter.   
  
"Apparently he was spotted flirting with a teller at the scene of a bank robbery that Flight Or Flight and his partner Heart Of Gold foiled," Patton snickered.  
  
"So wait, asking a girl if she's alright after a traumatic experience is flirting now?" Virgil snorted once he regained his composure.  
  
"Guess so. Not like I would know," Patton grinned, gesturing to the rainbow pin on his cardigan.  
  
"Seriously though, Flight Or Flight is about as straight as that rainbow on your pin. You'd think they would have figured that out by now," Virgil said with a roll of his eyes.

"And just how would  _you_  know?" Patton teased.

"Oh, Fight Or Flight and I are real close. One might even say we're the same person," Virgil grinned.  
  
Using their powers to help people and fight crime was Patton's idea. Virgil would have preferred keeping his powers a secret from the world. It was far less dangerous that way. But Patton insisted, and Virgil wasn't going to let Patton go it alone.  _That_  would be even more dangerous.  
  
Fight Or Flight and Heart Of Gold came onto the scene nine months before. Since then, they'd amassed quite a following. Fight Or Flight had super speed and super strength at his disposal. Heart Of Gold could heal himself and others. It was Patton who suggested that they base their superhero names off of common sayings, and Virgil played along because hey, this was Patton's idea in the first place. Why ruin his brother's fun?  
  
Besides, the name was an adequate summary of his powers. Fight summed up his enhanced strengths, and flight encompassed his enhanced speed. Patton's name, Heart of Gold, was a little less direct, but it still made sense given his healing abilities.

That said, they were  _far_ from the only people in the world with powers.

Three years before, an enterovirus spread around the world.  _Most_ who came down with it experienced symptoms akin to a severe cold before recovering a few days later. For a select few, it changed the course of their lives.

In these people, the virus triggered mutations in their DNA. Inevitably, word spread about the strange things happening. A woman in New York was suddenly unable to touch anyone without making them seriously and violently ill. A child in Jordan breathing fire like a dragon. A person in Russia who could suddenly breathe underwater. A man in Chile who could conduct electricity. Eventually, the infections petered out, but those who had unique gifts (or curses) bestowed upon them would have these abilities for the rest of their lives.

Virgil and Patton were among this group. Seth and Toby fell ill as well, though neither experienced the same effects as Virgil or Patton - for them, the illness manifested as a cold and only a cold. August somehow managed to escape infection  _entirely_.

The brothers discovered their abilities around the same time. Virgil grew startled by a sudden noise in the next room (which later turned out to be Toby knocking a lamp into the wall), shattering the glass that he held in his hands.

He'd been confused - He had anxiety, so being startled wasn't anything new. He'd never had a glass literally  _shatter_ in his hands, though.

Of course Patton came running as soon as he saw the cuts on Virgil's hands. "Oh no, what happened?"

"I was holding the glass and it just broke in my hand," Virgil stared down at his bloody hand in confusion.

"Oh dear, maybe there's a defect in the glass! Lemme see your hand, then we can get some band-aids and get you all patch...wait, what?" Patton stared at Virgil's hand as well.

As soon as Patton took Virgil's hand into his, the cuts began to heal at a rapid rate. After a moment or so, the blood was still present, but the cuts were  _gone_. 

"Whoaaaaaaaaaa did you just heal Virgil's hand, Dad?" they heard Seth ask from the doorway.

"I...I guess I did," Patton blurted out, wonder in his voice. He began to grin in what was undoubtedly excitement, while Virgil gaped at the whole scene - including the shattered remains of the glass that was formerly in his hand.

"August, Toby! Patton's got powers!" Seth shouted. Virgil could hear his other two brothers moving about, heading to the kitchen to check things out.

Virgil, on the other hand, felt as if his heart might burst out of his chest. He needed to leave, he needed to  _get out of the room_. And so he ran, ran as fast as he could to his...

_...what the hell._

Yes, Virgil ran as fast as he could, but he was already standing in the doorway to his bedroom, and he'd been in the kitchen two seconds earlier. If that didn't confirm his theories that he was going through something similar to Patton, nothing else would. The difference? Patton reacted with excitement. Virgil reacted by losing consciousness.

On the bright side, once Virgil came back around he'd calmed somewhat. The whole thing was still scary as could be, and he was woefully unprepared for it (and he probably should have been prepared for it - it wasn't as if the Sanders household didn't keep up with the news), but at least he wasn't alone. Patton was dealing with this whole thing too - and much better than Virgil, Virgil might add - and August, Seth, and Toby were stoked to have what they called 'real life superheroes in the family'.

Patton, Virgil, August, Seth, and Toby eventually reached an agreement to keep it all a secret, even from their mother. People were afraid of things they didn't understand, and Virgil knew that people were going to have a  _really_ hard time understanding all of this. He hardly understood it, and he was one of the ones experiencing it!

Sadly, his prediction came true. It didn't help that some had incredibly dangerous powers that made them threats to themselves and others around them. Others used their abilities to carry out crimes that they might not have committed otherwise. Inevitably, some people began to fear those who were different from them through no actual fault of their own. And things were only getting worse as of late, as politicians took advantage of the increasing unrest. Groups who wanted change grew more vocal. It had yet to boil over, but Virgil still feared that it would hit that point - and what would happen then?

He didn't have time to ponder that, not at the moment. Virgil and Patton heard a knock at the door.

"Hmmm, wonder who that could be?" Patton frowned, setting his phone on the back of the couch and making his way over to the door.

Virgil pulled out his own phone, about to start playing a game when he heard Patton gasp excitedly in the doorway. "Toby!"


	3. Chapter 3

"What brings you to our humble abode?" Patton greeted their youngest brother with a huge grin and a bear hug. "You should have warned me that you were coming over! I would have thrown something extra on the stove for you!"  
  
"Argh...Dad, I can't breathe," Toby forced out. Patton immediately released Toby, eyeing him in concern. Toby, on the other hand, looked relieved.   
  
"Hey Virge,"Toby nodded in Virgil's direction when he spotted Virgil leaning against the door jam.   
  
"Hey Tobe," Virgil returned the nod.  
  
"You never answered my question, kiddo!" Patton continued where he left off.  
  
"Oh yeah, I came over to invite you guys to one of our shows...just a sec, I'll get you one of our flyers... Toby set his backpack down and began to rummage around. He retrieved a small stack of papers and plucked one from the top to hand to Patton.  
  
Patton gasped. "You're performing at Lados Stadium? That's the biggest venue in town! Way to go kiddo!"   
  
Patton scooped Toby in for another bear hug, but was noticeably more gentle this time.  
  
Virgil crept closer, wanting to see the flyer for himself. The first thing he noticed was that said flyer was  _very_ colorful.

The flyer depicted a young man around Virgil and Patton's age dressed in white and red and holding a microphone with rainbow colored lights behind him. _Beneath him, the flyer read Roman Ramón At Lados Stadium, March 25th!_  
  
"...Roman _Ramón_? Is that actually his name?" Virgil said with a snort.  
  
"I'd assume it's a stage name. I kinda like it!" Patton beamed. "Has a nice ring to it!"  
  
"He looks a bit full of himself to me," Virgil mumbled.  
  
"He's actually not that bad," Toby said with a shrug. "I mean yeah, he is a bit pompous, but he was willing to let us play at his show with the understanding that it would help us promote our band, so..."  
  
"He's not a complete loser then? Good to know," Virgil replied.  
  
"Virgil! Give him a chance, he's letting the kiddos play at his show!" Patton smiled.   
  
"And that's great, but that doesn't mean that I have to think he's hot shit," Virgil crossed his arms over his chest and rolled his eyes.  
  
"Are you guys going to come, then?" Toby asked.  
  
"Of course we are! Wouldn't miss it for the world!" Patton grinned.  
  
"Sure, but I'm coming for _you_ guys, not Roman Roman or whatever his name is," Virgil said with a shrug.  
  
"Roman Ramón," Patton corrected. "It flows off the tongue!"  
  
"Why do you have such an issue with him anyway, Virge?" Toby arched an eyebrow.  
  
"He reminds me of this guy I used to know in high school. His name was Roman too. Roman Rodríguez. Saying that he was a complete and utter ass to me would be the understatement of the century," Virgil explained.  
  
"Why would he do that?" Toby blinked.  
  
"It should come as no surprise to you that I used to be a massive emo in high school," Virgil began.  
  
Toby let out a snort. " _Used_ to be? You're my style inspiration."  
  
Virgil blushed a little at that, though quickly tried to hide it. "Anyway, I was super emo, and he was a jock. You know how jocks are."  
  
Toby nodded knowingly. 

"So yeah. We didn't exactly get along," Virgil finished.

  
"Awww Virgil, you shouldn't take it out on _this_ Roman though! He sounds like a sweetie!" Patton protested.  
  
"Maybe he is. Or maybe it's the same Roman and I'm walking into a lion's den about to be devoured," Virgil said with a roll of his eyes.  
  
"Even if it is, who's to say he'll be the same as he was in high school? People can improve themselves," Patton said with a small smile.  
  
"Can we get off of how I feel about Roman Ramón? I'm going to the concert to support Toby, Elliott, Kai, and Lauren. How I feel about Roman Ramón has nothing to do with that," Virgil asserted.  
  
"I just hope they like us," Toby said nervously.   
  
"They'll love you!" Patton assured him.  
  
"I don't know. What if we screw up? We've never performed in front of a crowd this large before," Toby gulped.  
  
"You won't screw up, and even if you do, people won't hate you for it!" Patton insisted. "They have no reason to want to see you fail. Keep in mind you won't be alone up there either - You'll be with your friends. You got this," Patton shot Toby a thumbs up.

And this was why Virgil let  _Patton_ do most of the motivational talks. Despite his own desire to reassure Toby, Virgil could not help but think of everything that could potentially go wrong at the concert, and if he were the one in charge of reassuring Toby, he wasn't sure he'd be able to keep his mouth shut about all of them.

  
Toby was still visibly nervous, but he managed a smile toward Patton nevertheless. "Thanks Dad. Well, I should be going."  
  
"Awww, you don't want to stick around a bit longer?" Patton pouted. "I can easily cook enough to feed three! I used to cook for a lot more when you were all back at home!"  
  
"...it's tempting, but I really need to get to Seth's dorm. I'm supposed to meet with him next to discuss if he can come to the show," Toby replied, though Virgil could tell that he faltered a bit at the mention of Patton's cooking. Virgil couldn't blame him - Patton's cooking ought to be world renowned. Instead, it remained one of their family's many secrets. It wasn't quite as juicy as the secret that two members of their family were superheroes, but hey.  
  
"Awww, okay. You definitely need to come over again some time soon! I'll make your favorite dish!" Patton said cheerily.  
  
Toby smiled. "I'll think about it."  
  
Virgil and Patton watched as Toby left. Virgil let out a sigh and ran a hand through his hair. "I have a bad feeling about this."   
  
"Virge, I'm sure everything'll be fine. Toby and his friends will do great in the show!" Patton announced cheerily, optimistic as always. Virgil envied that about Patton sometimes.  
  
"I hope you're right, Pat," Virgil told his older brother before setting to work to help him with dinner. He couldn't help but feel that the whole arrangement seemed too good to be true, and in Virgil's experience when things seemed to good to be true? They usually were.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for fire and pyrotechnics gone wrong. Also...I might have done what Virgil did with the yearbook pics when I was younger, oop >.> <.<

Virgil did have to hand it to Roman Ramón, whoever he was - he did manage to score good seats for all of Toby and his band's guests. They weren't the best seats in the house, but Virgil couldn't recall ever sitting this close to the stage in any of the concerts he'd attended in the past.  
  
...then again, he'd only been to a handful of concerts. He enjoyed the music scene, but he'd never been a fan of crowds, not to mention it hadn't exactly been easy to  _afford_  good tickets (or tickets at all) when he was younger. And it wasn't like Lados Stadium was a small venue either. The one time he'd been to the stadium before, he'd sat in the nosebleed seats and was barely able to see what was happening on the stage without binoculars. Having to watch a concert through binoculars while already anxious about the large crowd didn't exactly do wonders for one's enjoyment of the thing.  
  
"They'll be on stage first, right?" Patton yelled to Virgil over the hum of the crowd.  
  
"Yeah," Virgil shouted back, not wanting to even try to say anything else. He was managing well enough with the crowd with Patton there, but he didn't want to draw too much attention to himself by trying to shout over other people just so that his brother could hear what he was saying.   
  
In fact, if it came down to it? Virgil decided that he would type out his messages to Patton on his cell phone.  
  
"We are pleased to introduce a local act with potential to make it into the big leagues some day - We hope you enjoy HOT MESS!" a voice announced from the speakers.  
  
A while passed since Virgil heard Toby's band play live, and they were better than ever. Toby was great on his drums, and during the few times that he sung he harmonized well with the rest of the group. The bass player, Kai, did a fantastic job as well. His girlfriend Lauren played guitar as well as being one of two main singers in the band. The other was Elliott, Toby's best friend. Elliott and Lauren did a wonderful job with their vocals, and it was ultimately the best performance Virgil heard from the group- certainly a good way to introduce themselves to a larger crowd.   
  
The crowd bellowed and cheered when Hot Mess finished. Virgil found himself beaming almost as hard as Patton. Here, he didn't feel so bad about clapping and cheering, because so many  _others_ were, and as just about everyone's attention was on the stage, he didn't have to worry about anyone shooting him any weird looks or wondering why he was getting so excited.  
  
Once the crowd died down again, Virgil took his seat once more.  
  
Roman Ramón was decent, Virgil would begrudgingly give him that. His music wasn't  _quite_  Virgil's kind of music, but he had a good voice and many of his songs had a good sound to them. The crowd loved him, and Virgil had to cover his ears as a group of girls nearby let out ear-piercing screams when Roman asked for a volunteer to come up on stage with him.  
  
Virgil sunk in his chair. Of  _course_  he wanted someone from the audience. Virgil found himself imagining a truly awful scenario, where Roman Ramón called him onto the stage, where everyone's eyes were directly on  _him_...  
  
Virgil's stomach gave a particularly powerful lurch when Roman Ramón's eyes stared in his direction. He slunk even further down in his seat. Was it just him, or was Roman Ramón staring  _directly at him_?  
  
"That young man right there!" Roman called out, pointing right at him.  
  
Virgil was shaking at this point, his head spinning. Couldn't Roman Ramón see that he didn't want to go up on stage?  
  
"The cute one in the glasses!"  
  
Oh.  _Ohhhhhhhhh._    
  
Virgil let out a massive sigh of relief. Roman Ramón wasn't calling for Virgil, or pointing to him, he was calling for  _Patton_. It still meant more attention Virgil's way than he'd hoped for, but he wasn't the one who'd have to go on stage in front of everyone. It was Patton.  
  
And Patton looked utterly ecstatic about it, letting out a scream of delight.  
  
"Did you hear that, Virgil? He called me cute! He called me cute, Virgil!" Patton gushed.  
  
Virgil snickered. "Yes, he called you cute. Quick, get up there before he picks someone else," Virgil urged his brother, and Patton ran toward the end of their aisle and up toward the stage at once.  
  
"Would you be willing to share your name with the crowd, stranger?" Roman asked Patton once Patton made it up the stage.  
  
"Patton. Patton Sanders!" Patton called out in delight.  
  
Virgil looked on fondly. He knew Patton was nervous, but only because Patton was his slightly older brother and Virgil  _knew_  all of his gives. To anyone else, Virgil had to imagine that Patton looked right at home up on stage.  
  
"Patton! I like that name! Are you from around here?" Roman continued.  
  
Virgil had to let out a snort at that. He supposed that people did travel occasionally for concerts, but they usually didn't come from  _too_  far out of town, maybe an hour or two at most.  
  
"I am, actually!" Patton beamed. "I attended Lados High School!"  
  
"You did?" Roman gasped. "So did I! Class of 2007!"  
  
"2006!" Patton beamed. "We're former schoolmates!"  
  
The crowd let out a mixture of cheers and awws at that.   
  
Virgil was fairly certain that he was the only one who  _groaned_.  
  
Roman Ramón was a graduate of Lados High School's class of 2007?   
  
Virgil was a graduate of the class of 2008. He could have been class of 2007, but his birthday fell in late December, meaning that his parents opted to send him to school when he was 3 months away from turning 6 rather than 3 months away from turning 5. He knew full well who was  _also_  a graduate of the Lados High School's class of 2007, and there was no Roman Ramón listed as a student in the class of 2007 in any of their yearbooks. There was, however, a Roman  _Rodríguez_. He would know - He'd sought out the jerk's face and scribbled over it with pen until it was unrecognizable in every single one of his yearbooks.  
  
Great. That cinched it. Roman Ramón was indeed Roman Rodríguez, the teenager who'd caused him all sorts of grief when he was in high school. The one who picked him out of a crowd, seemed to have the uncanny ability to detect when Virgil was already having a bad day, and would proceed to make it  _worse_  by pointing out all of his flaws.  
  
It was...hard for even Virgil to believe. Roman Ramón and Patton seemed to get along well. One would think Roman would recognize that Patton bore the last name Sanders, and that Sanders was the last name of the kid he used to bully in high school.  
  
...or that the drum player for Hot Mess was  _also_  a Sanders.  
  
Then again, Sanders wasn't all that rare of a last name?  
  
"Are you here with anyone?" Roman wondered.  
  
"My brother, Virgil! Hi Virgil!" Patton announced.  
  
A very brief flash came over Roman's face, a flash where the musician looked almost  _stricken_ , but then one of the members of the band behind Roman announced that they were going to play their latest hit and that Patton was going to join in, and Roman was back to normal, as if nothing ever happened. It was a particularly boisterous show, with pyrotechnics and special effects galore. Presumably one of the last sets before the end of the concert.  
  
Virgil couldn't tell whether to feel relieved or confused, but he certainly wasn't enjoying the concert with the same fervor as before. In fact, he found that he could hardly concentrate on what was happening on the stage.  
  
A series of screams broke through his reverie.  
  
Were it just one scream, Virgil would have probably thought nothing of it, but it was soon followed by another, and then  _another_. These weren't the sorts of screams he heard when the crowd was cheering for Roman - oh no. These screams were entirely different.  
  
Fire.  
  
There was  _fire_  up near the stage. Another scream as what appeared to be a firework, presumably for the finale of the show, going off directly into the crowd. More screams as the firework exploded in the crowd of people. In the midst of all of this, Roman stopped singing abruptly, as did Patton. The band stopped playing.   
  
Virgil checked to make certain that no one nearby was paying attention to him, then slinked into the shadows.   
  
A few minutes later, a figure emerged from the shadows, but Virgil Sanders was nowhere to be seen.  
  
Fight Or Flight was on the scene.


End file.
